It’s Sunday Again: God is Present

The words are easy to say, often difficult to believe. Our gracious God has brought us to this point in time through whatever difficulties and challenges, mistakes and problems we may have experienced–even those we inadvertently brought upon ourselves. He has promised his presence as he walks beside us into the future.

Who are we to question the presence of God in our lives because we have disappointed ourselves? Who are we to question the presence of God in the lives of others because they have disappointed us? The promised presence of God says it is always time to forgive ourselves, forgive others, and rejoice that God’s presence makes forgiveness possible. The Christian life does not have a reverse gear. Christianity does not need “do overs” because God’s forgiveness erases the past from his memory. Let’s not shackle ourselves with the past when the future looms bright–God is present!

You are Blessed if….

Yesterday I officiated at the funeral of a sister in Christ. During the meal which followed at the church building, I sat at the table with a man and his wife who are the employers and coworkers of one of the sons. We had a delightful conversation, sharing lives and experiences.

As I shared a little of my story, the guest said, “You are blessed when you figure out what life is about early and are able to spend your entire life focused on God’s plan for you.” Indeed! It is easy to overlook the multiple ways in which God has blessed our lives. Jan and I spent over 30 of the 40 years of our ministry in two churches (12 years and 8 years) and two universities (7 years and 4 years). We have ministered in two tenures with a third church. Mission work has taken us to places undreamed of when we were younger. We have friends around the world.

Little did we realize what God was doing–our desire was simply to follow him. More than once I have observed that through many years of our ministry, we had little idea what we were doing–we were just having fun and enjoying life, following Him, leaving the results to Him, and He blessed our efforts richly. One of my graduate students described our attitude toward following Jesus with the word “unhesitatingly”. Jan and I have been blessed, not because we had (or have) figured out what life is about, but because we were and are confident in our awareness of our God who directs our lives.

It is not on the same level as the Beatitudes of Scripture, but you are blessed if you can confidently depend on God to direct your life.

Ignoring or Contradicting God’s Will Doesn’t Change It

It appears that the controversy over Proposition 8 in California and who can legally be married in the eyes of the laws of our land will have a long life, continuing through a series of appeals and rulings, likely to the U.S. Supreme Court. I applaud those who have worked diligently to make certain that all of the dimensions and dynamics of the case are kept in view. There is cause for concern when God’s will as revealed in Scripture ceases to be the foundation of our legal system.

In our post-modern society with its tendency toward subjective truth, it is essential to realize that human decisions about what is right or wrong do not change God’s definitions. We have lived with an example of such conflict for over 30 years (since Roe v. Wade). Human decisions about what is legally acceptable do not overrule God’s objective truth which defines what is morally acceptable.

Let us recommit to treating others morally, with all of the dignity and worth which comes from creation in the image of God. Let us not be selective in whom we include; let us not ignore the unique human nature that God gave us as he equipped us for living in this biological world while having the capacity for simultaneous existence in the spiritual realm.

Life is about Relationships

It is always special to “go home.” Last Sunday I preached at the Holmes Road Church in Lansing, Michigan. The bulletin board declared, “Welcome Home, Bob and Jan!” In August 1976, my family and I began twelve years of delightful ministry with the Holmes Road Church. It is hard to believe that was 34 years ago!

Last Sunday we remembered, we celebrated, we rejoiced, we cried. One sister (who will remain unnamed in this blog) said, “Thirty-four years! That was half a lifetime ago–I am almost 68!” We are not the same people we were 34 years ago. The church is not the same church. But our shared experiences remind that our relationships in Christ are eternal, just as is our relationship with God through Christ.

As one gets older, one becomes aware that the majority of life has passed to the past. Many of the things that mattered do not matter any more. The things we wanted are no longer high on our “want list”. The memories are less and less about things and more and more about the people who have brought us to where we are today. When we were younger, it was not always clear that life is about relationships. Today we are thankful to God that we established and nurtured relationships even when we did not realize how important they were. One more evidence of the grace of God. Thank you, Lord!

It’s Sunday Again: God’s Plan

Perhaps nothing matters more to the success and spiritual vitality of God’s people than understanding God’s purpose and plan correctly. As a church, we can go through a lot of motions that seek to please, worship, and adore God, but if we fail to connect with his eternal purpose, we fail to participate in and fulfill his purpose in our lives.

While the easy (and obvious) answer to God’s purpose can be summarized in evangelism and bringing more souls to kingdom existence, the process is more complex. Today’s sermon suggests that the church must find God’s presence and purpose through its search for and understanding of six dynamics. These six things are essential to the spiritual journey, both individually and corporately.

    The church must discover and live out faith.
    The church must learn to focus on the plan and purpose of God, integrating biblical truth and contextualized ministry.
    The church must live out genuine fellowship as a family of God.
    The church must commit to fidelity.
    The church must learn festivity as it lives and worships.
    The church must in hope point to the future.

Six points is too many for today’s sermon, but we will start the journey, and continue it in the weeks to come.

New Beginnings

I try always to be grateful for the opportunity to find newness and refreshment. I believe God desires us to find in each day its newness–a day we have never seen before, a day we have never experienced before, a day that is a gift from God; a day that will bring new challenges and new opportunities. We seldom experience such renewal–too often our days have a certain sameness and routine, even boredom.

Today I see want to see newness! I will be helped by being in a different place with different activities, new challenges and renewed relationships. In reality, these are only the periphery of life–the center of life is the newness possible in one’s walk with God through Christ–his presence, our communication, our shared commitments, our single purpose, the desire to do only what he wants and only that which brings him glory in the context of life.

Celebrating Each Day

It is no easy thing to celebrate each day. Days are filled with challenges, difficulties, and so many little things that they sometimes all run together. It is not easy to take time and relish the full moon illuminating the early morning sky today, the puffy clouds sailing past, the refreshing breeze that says fall will come again this year despite the promise of 100 degree temperatures this week.

Today we will attend the funeral of one of my first cousins in Arkansas. We shared time with most of the cousins and many of the second and third generation cousins at a family reunion earlier this month. There were 21 of us first cousins all together–Sharon was only the second to decease. A reminder that we are growing older should give even more reason to celebrate the day.

I will look today for the little things of life and I will celebrate and rejoice in them–above all because God is the giver of life and the giver of days.

Interim ministry: A microcosm

Sunday I will begin an interim ministry with the Holmes Road church in Lansing, Michigan. During my years in Christian higher education, I did several interim ministries. Interim ministries are of varying duration, depending on the needs of the local church. The duration of my previous interim ministries has varied from about six weeks (until the new preacher arrived) to almost three years. What will distinguish this interim ministry is that we will spend only four weeks with the church, and that our ministry is not planned to last until the arrival of the next minister.

During those four weeks, we hope to help the church become aware of and process with personal applications what usually occurs in ministerial separation–disenchantment, doubt, identity questions, disengagement, and organizational turmoil. Despite the typical challenges, the absence of a regular, consistent pulpit presence allows a church to ask identity questions focused on the local congregation and the ministry context apart from ministerial influences.

This will be a time of finding future direction. We will facilitate a self-study to help understand how the church system has functioned in the past and to identify systemic strengths and weaknesses. The self-study will include a brief history of the church with special emphasis on system factors, identity questions, and mission (purpose) questions.

The self-study is designed to solidify the commitment of the church to renewal of its identity, purpose, mission and message, and healthy structures. The self-study will also provide a clear direction to the future based on current internal and external factors, thus contextualizing the ministry plans and providing direction for the search and call of the next minister.

If you would like more information about interim ministry dynamics, please contact me or check out my Interim Ministry Page.

It’s Sunday Again: Amazing

Amazing! No other word says it better! John Newton wrote about “Amazing Grace.” Mark wrote about an amazing man–amazing works and amazing words. Amazing stories!

Who is this amazing man? Who is this “Jesus”? Mark leaves no doubt about his answer: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” With power over evil (unclean spirits), all kinds of diseases, leprosy, paralysis, the Sabbath, even nature–Jesus lives out the claim of Mark 1:1. The disciples marvel as they experience faith and fear (unfaith) side by side: Who is this that even the waves obey his voice?

But the question Mark is most interested in is not “who is Jesus?”, but “who can be a follower of Jesus?” This is the central question of this short gospel. The question resounds across the centuries. It is the question of every human heart that gets a clear view of Jesus. Can I be a follower of Jesus? Will he accept me? To answer the question, Mark fills his gospel with stories of people like us–people whose past is characterized by and even overcome with evil, people who have served in the demonic realm, religious outsiders, people considered unclean, people with doubts, people fearful in the midst of the desire to believe. The outcasts of society can come to Jesus and he will accept them and welcome them–the women, the blind, the children….

All it takes is a commitment to really be a follower! Mark’s third question is a natural follow up: What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus? Change, faith, action. Ready, set, go! The good news is that Jesus wants us to become his disciples! We can be like him, which means that we will never be the same again.

Appearance isn’t everything–but it is something!

At the risk of being too political, I share an observation I heard recently: “The biggest problem I have with our president is that he just doesn’t appear presidential.” I recognize that some see it differently, but the person making the statement went on to cite perceptions of rushed judgment, broken promises, reversed decisions, too much involvement in the “fray”, and the inability to demonstrate the kind of stability and wisdom that charts one’s course from a position above the crashing waves of the moment.

This is not an article about national politics, it is an article about preachers. I have noted that some preachers have dressed down so far, both in the pulpit and in their work attire, that they communicate something they likely do not want to communicate. Informal attire can communicate lack of competence, lack of confidence, lack of respect, and lack of authoirty. As one distraught husband observed upon entering the church building and seeking counseling, “You mean he is the preacher?” Indeed–it’s hard to imagine a competent, well-trained counselor in shorts and flip-flops.

Perhaps in a casual society there is something to be said for “dressing down” and meeting the people where they are. On the other hand, there is also something to be said for being a person who raises the level of society and reflects a higher standard of excellence in every aspect of life. I have known more than one instance where a potential contact rejected the church because of an appearance too informal. I have never known of a situation where a potential contact walked away because of too formal an appearance. After all, the preacher may have just come from a funeral! I no longer take naps with my tie on (kidding!), but I do attempt to maintain a level of decorum that is above expectation wherever I am.

I know that appearance is more than attire–it is our demeanor, the impressions we make, our friendliness, openness, encouragement, and a host of other factors. On the other hand, attire is a part of our appearance. And while appearance isn’t everything–it is something!